Stormy Weather

“Rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” Romans 5:5-6

Oh, the joys of living on a boat. You ever hear the saying “when it rains it pours”? Well, in south Texas, on the Gulf of Mexico that little quote could not be more true. Don’t get me wrong, I like the rain… When all I have to do is sit back and enjoy the sound and smell. That is a very nice and relaxing way to spend an evening. What I don’t like is to have to spend my entire evening, or in this case, the early morning hours cleaning up the mess it made. My boat might be in the water, but I certainly don’t want the water in my boat.

I could go about complaining, but what does complaining ever actually accomplish? Instead, during this little ordeal, I think it really is time to rejoice. I now know that there is a leak in the cabin of my boat, therefore I can find a solution to this problem and reduce the work the next storm brings with it. Also, my bilge pump is dead (this is the pump that automatically pumps excess water out of the boat) which as a result, caused me to have to use the hand pump, another problem that I am now aware of and will be able to fix.

I am writing this because I find it to fit quite nicely into all of those “when a storm rolls into your life” stories, but in a very literal sense.

A storm rolled in. Water found its way in through the unprotected, dare I say neglected areas. I had to work through the middle of the night at containing something that I should have paid more attention to in the first place. The great thing about all of this though is the fact that it helped me identify an area that needed attention. I could apply this very thing to almost any defect I have in my life. It’s those areas I don’t keep guarded where I ultimately struggle.

When you realize you messed up, or failed at something, don’t beat yourself up over it. Be thankful that at the very least you know what needs to be fixed. As the saying goes “knowing is half the battle”.

Next time a storm rolls into your life… Check for leaks, and then fix them!

Home on the water...

For those of you interested in where exactly we are, we are docked at a marina in Ingleside Bay which is kind of a part of Corpus Christi Bay which also seems to be a part of Redfish Bay..? Something like that anyway. It is very quiet and well protected. There is a little island that everybody rows out too to lay out or to fish. One of our neighbors pulled out about a 40-50 lb fish (I don't know what kind it was) from right off of his little boat next to the island. Sitting out at the docks this morning and you could see tons of fish jumping in schools. I'm hoping it's as easy to catch them as everyone around us has made it look!

The last few days were spent just driving around checking out our surrounding areas trying to get an idea of what kind of stores and shops are close by. The towns here individually, are very small. However, all the towns are connected and it's kind of hard to tell when you go from one to the next. Corpus Christi is about 15 minute drive from here and it has everything we could possibly need if we can't find it locally.

Yesterday I saw a couple of kids out playing catch in the street. The only reason that stood out to me is because I have not seen kids outside physically playing without the addition of some sort of electronic devise or controller for a long, long time. People around here are extremely friendly and courteous. A very nice change! It's a different story once they get behind the while of a car, or in most cases a HUGE truck. I have seen defensive driving courses before, but yesterday we drove past an "Offensive/Aggressive Driving School". I'm not kidding either. They drive like maniacs here.

Last night was the first night spent in our new home on the water! I can't say that sleep was all that great, all the new noises kept me up for most of the night.

...Here are a few pictures of our neighborhood: the fishing pier, the beach picnic area, our new backyard and our boat after we launched it. We have to wait to raise the mast until it is not quite so windy.

A Little Bit Closer...

Nothing profound or impressive to say today, not that any of my previous posts have contained such things... However, I am quite excited about the progress that we have made! I have been slacking in the update department, so I thought I would post some before and after pictures of what we have done to the interior. What you will not be able to see, and what I regretfully did not take any before, during or after pictures of is all the dried and cracked hoses, bad plumbing and the mess of wiring I had to go through and replace before any of the cosmetic changes. The REAL difference is below all the cushions. I should have made an instructional/how to video out of everything that we accomplished. I don't think that far ahead though. Anyway, take a look!